Two men charged with tavern murder

Press, 6 December 1985, Page 14

Two men charged with tavern murder

Shortly after a schoolboy saw several men go from the car-park into the Woolston Tavern, one carrying an object close to his chest, shots were fired and a patron killed. There were about 30 patrons in the bar at the time.

Evidence of the incident was given in the District Court yesterday at the preliminary hearing of a joint charge of murder against two men.

The defendants are Wally Awatere, aged 28, a scrubcutter, and Andrew Peter McGlynn, aged 18, unemployed. They are jointly charged

„with the murder of Edward Ivan Nelson, aged 34, in the Woolston Tavern late in the evening of September 27. Mr G. R. Lascelles and Professor G. F. Orchard appear for Awatere, and Mr M. J. Knowles for McGlynn.

Mr G. K. Panckhurst and Miss K. P. McDonald appear for the Crown which is calling 30 witnesses.

The hearing, before Judge Fogarty, will continue today. In his outline of the Crown’s case Mr Panckhurst said that it was alleged that the shooting occurred after the two defendants and others arrived in two cars at the tavern. Mr Nelson suffered fatal injuries from .22 calibre bullet wounds in his chest, one of which penetrated his heart and another a lung.

After the shooting the defendants and others in the group, who were members of the Black Power gang, left the tavern and drove off rather hastily. The defendants called at the Central Police Station the next day.

Emmalina Te Aroha Wiparata, a beneficiary, said that she was an associate member of the Mongrel Mob gang. She told of drinking at the hotel with Mr Nelson and a girlfriend, girl, aged 16, entered the bar and stood by a bar leaner, staring at her.

She and the 16-year-old girl previously had fought; she knew the girl was associated with the Black Power gang. The girl left the bar and then returned, accompanied by about 12 Black Power gang members.

Miss Wiparata said the girl "stepped her out,” wanting a fight, but she declined. She was told she would be "wasted.” She told Mr Nelson the “Blacks” were going to waste her, and he told them to leave her alone.

One of the men, McGlynn, held what looked like a gun in his leather jacket. Shortly after, she told Mr Nelson that she wanted to leave. He said that he would telephone for a taxi. When Mr Nelson went to make a telephone call three men, one of them McGlynn, walked along the side of the bar while some Black Power members stood round her. The last she saw of Mr Nelson was his walking into another part of the bar, followed by the three men. She then heard three shots. The three then returned, and two of them made Black Power signs with their fists.

The group then left the hotel.

Miss Wiparata said that she went to Mr Nelson and found him lying on his back,

being attended by a man. She spoke to him and he said: “Oh, babe.” A girl, aged 16, said that she was a Black Power gang member. On the evening of September 27 she went to the national marae in Pages Road, and met several others, including the two defendants. She mixed with them at the marae, and drank whisky. Earlier in the day she had been drinking at the Bush Inn Tavern. She left with six men in two cars, driving to the Woolston Tavern. She went into the hotel and looked round, and saw Nina Wiparata. She looked at her very, long because she did not get on well with her. She moved towards her and spoke to her and they argued.

The witness said that she had not seen any of the men in the cars carrying anything. In the bar McGlynn pulled back his jacket and showed her something in his pocket like a brown piece of wood. She did not know what it was. It could have been anything. She told McGlynn that she might have a scrap with Nina. She walked over to her . and told her to step outside, but she did not do so.

The witness said that she walked back towards the foyer. She did not see Awatere or McGlynn at that stage.

She then heard a shot. She left the hotel with some of the men but did not see the others. As she left the foyer she kicked the windows. She did not know why she did this. “I just did it.”

She did not see what happened to the other car that had accompanied them. She was dropped off at a woman gang member’s house. Later, she fell asleep. She had taken pills as well as drunk whisky that day. James Wiremu Silbery, a part-time barman at the tavern, said that he was working in the bottle store and heard three or four shots in quick succession, come from the public bar.

He went into the bar and saw Awatere and McGlynn walking out a back entrance, towards the carpark. McGlynn had his hand in his coat. The witness did not see him carrying anything. He heard breaking of glass about the time the men left.

Mr Silbery said that at the time they left he noticed confusion and panic in the area of the bar near a telephone box, and saw a man lying on the floor, and two women near his body.

There were 30 or 40 people in the bar at the time.

A schoolboy, aged 13, said that from an adjoining flat he heard a loud car enter the tavern car-park. He went outside and saw two cars had stopped, nose to nose. Four persons, all Maoris with long hair, got out of the first car. One held something about 50cm long into his chest. The witness said that he could not see what the object was because of the darkness.

The persons from the cars went into the tavern.

Later, he heard shots fired.